House Committee Advances Millions in Funding for Lupus Research Program

Late yesterday, the U.S. House of Representatives' Committee on Appropriations advanced its fiscal year 2024 Department of Defense (DoD) funding bill which includes $10 million for the Lupus Research Program!

The Lupus Research Program was established in 2017 after years of advocacy from the Lupus Foundation of America and its advocates. Since then, the Lupus Research Program has received $55 million in federal funding for its important work as Congress continues to recognize the importance of the Program's high-impact research into every aspect of the disease. Learn more about the research the program has most-recently funded.

The Foundation annually advocates on Capitol Hill for continued funding for the Lupus Research Program at the DoD. Most recently, hundreds of lupus advocates held nearly 180 congressional meetings with their elected officials as part of the 2023 National Lupus Advocacy Summit in April, with thousands more contacting their members of Congress online in support of lupus research.

As always, we are especially thankful to every lupus advocate who has contacted their members of Congress in support of lupus research. Your voices and your stories make victories like these possible, and we are honored to have you as our partner as we work on these critically important issues.

We would also like to thank the Congressional Lupus Caucus for championing our cause on Capitol Hill, especially the Caucus Co-Chairs Representatives Bill Keating (D-MA) and Andrew Garbarino (R-NY). Additionally, we sincerely appreciate the leadership of Defense Subcommittee Chairman Ken Calvert (R-CA) and Ranking Member Betty McCollum (D-MN) as well as Appropriations Committee Chair Kay Granger (R-TX) and Ranking Member Rosa DeLauro (D-CT).

Next Steps

The bill now heads to the full House of Representatives for a vote later this year. The Senate Appropriations Committee still must release and act on its version of the legislation.

Additionally, the Appropriations Committees in the House and Senate have yet to release their fiscal year 2024 Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education (LHHS) spending bills which are expected to include funding for the National Lupus Patient Registry at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Lupus Program at the Office of Minority Health, and the National Institutes of Health.

To stay up-to-date on the appropriations process as it moves forward, be sure that you are signed up as a lupus advocate!